


and sings to me inside.

by SirenSong



Category: Transformers Generation One
Genre: Dorks in Love, Fluff, Gift Exchange, M/M, Obligatory Don't Sue Me Disney Tag, Secret Solenoid, Singing
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-01-05
Updated: 2019-01-05
Packaged: 2019-10-04 23:32:59
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,043
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17313902
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SirenSong/pseuds/SirenSong
Summary: “I said you wereout of this world.”( Or Tracks and Raoul out on the roads during the holidays, belting out songs, living the life, and loving each other. )





	and sings to me inside.

**Author's Note:**

  * For [thirsty4percy](https://archiveofourown.org/users/thirsty4percy/gifts).



> **Pairings:** Raoul/Tracks.
> 
>  **Warnings:** None.
> 
>  **General Notes:** Part of the Secret Solenoid Exchange 2018! I hope you like this, Caitlyn. This is also set before 2005 in the timeline of OG G1 Transformers continuity, so I surprisingly had a lot of movies and songs I could reference and use in this work.
> 
>  **Current Notes:** The prompt is as follows: _G1: Tracks & Raoul, on a road trip, belting out to Disney songs and having a grand old time. Can be shippy or gen._

“Sooooo,” Tracks begins, “Does anyone in your family know that you’re dating a dashing Autobot?”

“No way!” Raoul is still packing his things in Tracks' trunk for the road trip, most of his attention focused on the task at hand. “And what? Ruin my only big surprise to bring back to the family for the holidays?” He makes a pffft! sound with his mouth. “Get outta here, Tracks. For once, I'm going to beat Carlos on having the coolest news to bring back.”

As a Cybertronian, Tracks has no urgent want or need for air like most organic races did. But, all the same, he understood the dramatic appeal a perfectly executed sigh could convey.

Case in point: Now.

He sighs, and does so dramatically as he could while in he’s stuck in his altmode. “I just don’t want them to get surprised is all, Raoul. Or, worse, get scared of me. Last thing I want are panicking people calling the Autobots to claim that there's a seeker bothering them."

A seeker! He's still a little offended by the mistaken identification from the last time, because him? A seeker? Please. As if he'll be caught dead in any of those colours they sported with pride.

But, back to the matter at hand… He focuses his attention on Raoul, who finishes closing his trunk and lets out a dramatic sigh of his own. (Sometimes, Tracks wonders who is rubbing off on who more.)

“Look— If it makes you feel any better, I did decide to give them a little hint that I was bringing someone special when talking to mama on the phone last week. That way they know to have an extra plate on the table.”

Oh? Now _that_ gets his interest, reflected in how Tracks shifts from tire to tire like that’ll get him a better look at his partner. “And what would that hint be exactly?”

The moment he saw that grin on Raoul’s stupidly handsome face, Tracks knew should have seen it coming: “I said you _were out of this world_.”

Tracks feels like had every right to lock his doors and refuse to let Raoul inside until he got an apology.

———————————————————————————

_“You’re nervous?”_

_Raoul tried to smile a defiant and cocky sure in the wake of the comment. He almost succeeded in it too, if not for how there’s a flinch around his dark eyes, an uncertain twitch at the corner of his lips._

_In those soap operas that the others loved to watch back in the recreation room during their off-shit, Tracks had seen the way the actors would comfort their love interests in moments like these: They would reach out with one hand and rest it against the side of their love interest’s face, staring intently in their eyes. Maybe they would brush a thumb under their eye or on curve of their cheek, giving comfort and care in a little gesture._

_Much as he wanted to do that — ached to do that, honestly — he knew it wasn’t possible. Not with their considerable size difference. There was a better chance of him giving Raoul a black eye than the physical comfort he needed in that moment._

_In the end, he decided the best course of action was to release a gentle huff from his vents. With the fact they’re stargazing on the roof of the Ark on a surprisingly warm evening, it was bound to get Raoul’s attention._

_It certainly got a reaction out of him._

_“What the—?” Raoul was startled out of his pensive thoughts thanks to the sudden puff of air brushing against his skin, the exhaust warm and smelling strongly of heat and ozone. He jerked up right but managed to settle back down when he realised where it was from. “Really, Tracks? Really?” Raoul tilted his head up and gave Tracks the best stink eye he could manage there and then, his straining neck be damned. “While we’re stargazing in this heatwave?”_

_“It got your attention, didn’t it?” Tracks made sure to wear a ridiculously innocent expression on his face, the one he’s seen ‘Bee or ‘Sides sport whenever confronted by Prowl or Ratchet for one of their pranks. Big optics. Simpering smile. An absolutely disingenuous air around him._

_A beat and, sure enough, the utter silliness of the expression was enough to have Raoul laughing. The sound was brief but beautiful, Tracks thought to himself, and it lasted long enough to help Raoul in shaking off whatever was weighing him down._

_At least, long enough to have Raoul answer the question that started this:_

_“Fine,” he sighed when he finished laughing, rolling his eyes upward towards the sky. “I’m nervous, yeah.” He snuggled closer to Tracks’ frame, trying to chase after the warmth he provided. “It’s been a while since I’ve seen my family since I moved here. First time I’ll be seeing him face to face and everything.”_

_“And?” Tracks could tell there’s more to this._

_“I— I don’t know, man. Maybe I’m worried for their reactions? Maybe— Maybe I don’t want to be a disappointment to them?” Tracks can tell that it hurt Raoul to say that, with the flinch around his eyes and all, but it seems to have hit the bullseye. “Maybe I don’t want to be a disappointment to them. I want to prove that I was in the right to leave. That I could make something of myself here. That I became a man.”_

_Tracks felt his spark twist and stutter at seeing Raoul of all people to be so unsure of himself. He found himself wishing, yet again, how he could comfort his partner like he had seen the way actors would comfort their love interests in moments like these._

_Much as he wanted to do that — ached to do that, honestly — he knew it wasn’t possible. Not with their considerable size difference. There was a better chance of him giving Raoul a black eye than the physical comfort he needed in that moment._

_The most he can do was give Raoul a little nudge to show he wasn’t alone as the stars glittered above them and their spot on the Ark, flashing a smile he hoped was confident enough for the both of them._

_“You’re a man and more, Raoul,” he assured him. “You’re enough as you are.”_

_Raoul smiled up at him and Tracks knew it was going to be okay. For a little while._

———————————————————————————

Though he’ll deny it, Tracks couldn’t help but perk up when his scans pick up Raoul rummaging through his duffle bag, shifting through the pile of snacks and last minute souvenirs he had thrown in there.

He knows it can’t be anything but the The Playlist.

It’s a playlist that Tracks has become intimately familiar since the start of his relationship with Raoul. One that Raoul brought with him when he left his family behind for the glittering promise of New York City. One that Raoul added over the years and years and years when new movies came out and new songs caught his attention.

One that Tracks is proud to say that he happily contributed in over their time together as a couple, after he finally got around to watching those Disney movies with Raoul and found himself actually having favourites. (Not too much of a surprise, he supposes, given the impressive lineup that Disney managed to accumulate over the decades.)

“Already taking it out?” He thought he did a good job of hiding his enthusiasm when Raoul finally pulled it out, revealing the heavily scribbled on disc cover. “We’ve hardly gotten out of the city proper.”

And, of course, Raoul’s answer to his boyfriend is a peppy, “So?” He pops the disc into Tracks’s disc player, turning on the volume as Tracks’ systems read the disc’s information. “We’re out far enough to be able to enjoy this bad boy without anyone ragging us over it! Not that I care, of course. These songs are the bomb, man.”

“I can’t believe I’m indulging you like this,” Tracks sighs in a theatrical manner, making sure his sensor lights glow while he finales the best route for them to take so they can reach the address of a quaint little house in a quaint little town.

“You’re still letting me,” Raoul points out, giving the dashboard a fond pat. “It’s because you love me.”

“Of course it’s because I love you,” Tracks agree with yet another theatrical sigh, but there’s no denying the affection and care that can be found in his voice. “The things I do for you, Raoul.”

Not that Raoul can hear the last bit. The first song of the The Playlist comes in on a steady march of drums, an upbeat power ballad blaring through the speakers as the singer announces that it’s time to get down to business.

“Be a man!” Raoul drums his hands on the steering wheel, trying (and failing) to match the energetic pump of the song’s drums and singers, his eyes twinkling and his smile bright. “With the strength of a coursing river! With all the force of a great typhoon! With all the strength of a raging fire!”

Raoul may not be the best singer in the world — that title, begrudgingly enough, belongs to Powerglide’s partner, Astoria — but he has confidence in spades. There’s just something so charming about how stupidly proud his voice his as he belts out the lyrics with joy and excitement. Something sweet and familiar, as if reminding him why he fell for this boy with the stupidly handsome face with that stupidly proud voice in the first place.

Though Tracks will like to deny that he ‘howled’ when the lyrics, ‘mysterious as the dark side of the mooooon’ came along, thank you very much.

———————————————————————————

_“You’re worrying about this.” Tracks almost didn’t want to say the next part, but he forced himself to. “You’re worrying about us.”_

_In reply, Raoul threw a look at him. Not just a look, but a Look. He really was hanging out too much with the likes of Astoria and Carly, Tracks thought with amusement, keeping the worry at bay for a little bit._

_But the worry that gnawed at his tanks and circuits surged back when Raoul sighed, actually looking away from Tracks now as he turned his attention back to the the stars glittered above them and their spot on the Ark._

_Tracks loathed how small he sounded when he said, “Raoul... ?”_

_“Kind of?” Raoul met his optics again. He raised his hands up as if to stop something from happening. “I mean! Don’t get me wrong! I love you, Tracks. I really do. Our time together has been great and I wouldn’t trade it for the world.”_

_“But…?”_

_“It’s been… I don’t know.” Raoul does a little gesture with his hands, trying to find the right word for what he was trying to convey. “Intense? Yeah. I think that’s the word. I knew having a giant alien robot for a boyfriend would be cool and all, but, man, the adventures we get into? Only fools rush into them the way we do.”_

_“Like that song,” Tracks mused, wandering to a new topic for both of their sake’s. “From that movie we just watched. The one song by that band in the end. I think it’s rather fitting for us, don’t you think?”_

_“Fools Rush In? Don’t wanna sound like a total snob and all, but the original version is waaaaay better.” Raoul stretched out his limbs, his eyes shining with gratefulness at the change of topic. “But, yeah, I gotta agree. The song fits us, maybe, but not the entire movie.”_

_“So what would you say is our movie then?”_

_Raoul answered that one with ease: “Beauty and the Beast. The songs there are great and the animation was awesome. Plus, I think the story between Belle and the Beast fits us better, too.”_

_“If you so much as hint that I’m the Beast here,” Tracks warned, “than you can bet that you’re going to be walking back to your apartment after this.”_

_Raoul laughed and Tracks knew it was going to be okay. For a little while._

———————————————————————————

Halfway through their journey seems like the perfect time for Tracks to spring his surprise:

“Would it be remiss of me to make a request?”

“What? No! No way, Tracks.” Raoul smiles down at the steering wheel while he reaches out and turns off the radio for a bit, cutting off the Muses’ Gospel Truth so he could focus on his boyfriend. “Your systems, your choice. Kinda surprised you let me have control of the stereos for so long. You’re usually complaining to me to skip the Tarzan tracks by now.”

“Wanted to wait for the perfect opportunity for this.” Tracks allows the glove compartment to pop open, turning the light within it to better grab Raoul’s attention. “Look in here.”

“Hey now!” Raoul leans to the side and begins rummaging through the datapads and gloves inside the compartment, looking amused and annoyed and curious by the turn of events. “You said that this had to be closed up because you… Oh wow...”

Raoul pulls back to the driver’s seat, now holding a disc case turns it over, impressed and flattered by what’s written on the front:

**_For Raoul. Our songs.  
Love, Tracks._ **

“Our songs…” He flips the case over, reading the list of songs that were burned into the disc. “Oh wow. There’s a lot of them. When did you get the time to do something like this before we left?”

“Had some help with Blaster and his cassettes. He and Rewind are big fans of Disney themselves and they happen to have the entire collection.” The Disney company also likes to send advance copies of their latest movies to the Autobots, but not need to tell Raoul that. Yet. “What do you think?”

“What do I think?” Raoul looks up from the disc and smiles a stupidly honest smile at the steering wheel. Something about seeing that stupidly honest smile on that stupidly handsome face as Raoul speaks in that stupidly proud voice of his does something to Tracks’ spark. “I think I’m right on my call about you being a big sap.”

Tracks huffs, a bit flustered. “Just play it before you ruin the moment, Raoul. _Please_.”

Raoul laughs and indulges his partner, swapping out the discs and pressing the play button to start the playlist.

“Tale as old as time,” Mrs. Potts begins, “true as it can be…”

Then, they start to sing.

They start to sing without a care in the world and at the top of their lungs. They start to sing with all their heart and with all they’ve got. They start about seeing whole new worlds and feeling the love tonight, about wanting to kiss the girl and walking once upon a dream.

Most of all, they sing about love for the other and to each other.

———————————————————————————

_“You’re… happy? With us?”_

_Raoul looked up and held Tracks’ gaze, his expression unreadable while the question weighed heavily between the two of them as the stars glittered above them and their spot on the Ark._

_The silence from Raoul was almost enough to make Tracks nervous. Almost._

_Raoul smiled at him and Tracks knew it was going to be okay._

_“Yeah, Tracks,” Raoul said. “I’m happy. I’m happy with you.”_

———————————————————————————

By the time they finally reach the quaint little house in a quaint little town, they’ve just reached the halfway point of the new playlist, but Tracks is too nervous and worried and happy to try and make a quip about it.

Because the second he pulls to a stop in front of the gates and gets out of Tracks, the front door swings up and out tumbles a pack of humans who look so familiar to Raoul that Tracks finds himself surprised. There’s an older man who has Raoul’s face and a young girl who Raoul’s ears and an older boy who has Raoul’s bright smile. Everywhere he looks, he sees a little bit of Raoul in them and sees a little bit of them in Raoul.

And they’re all welcoming him back home, pulling him into the center of the group who are quick to hug him, kiss him, shake his hands and shout questions and friendly insults his way.

“Took you long enough! Thought you chickened out!”

“Raoul! Raoul! Raoul!”

“Welcome back, Raoul!”

“Hi Raoul! Hi!”

“Baby boy why did you take so long!”

Raoul hugs and kisses and shake hands with all he can reach, shouting answers and comebacks to those he can’t with a smile on his face and an honesty to his laughter that rings out in the open air.

A woman who must be his mother is quick to bring him into big and hearty embrace when she finally reaches his side, eagerly kissing his face and fixing his hair much to Raoul’s embarrassment and Tracks’ amusement. “Where’s this special boy you promised to bring back, Raoul? Don’t tell me you got scared and told him not to come! We have a plate out for him and everything.”

“No way!” Raoul pulls back from his mother after he gives her a peck on each cheek, twisting around enough so he can catch the gaze of Tracks. “In fact, I think that’s Tracks’ cue to impress you all! Tracks!”

Tracks won’t admit it, but he loves the shock and awe and wonder that humans have in their eyes whenever he or one of the Autobots transform from altmode to root mode.

The crowd screams in delight — And not fear! Thank Primus for small miracles! — and some even clap, making Tracks think the best course of action for him to act is give an extravagant bow at the waist as a show of thanks, his face flushing from the whistles and cheers that they’re showering upon him.

And Raoul, with that stupidly honest smile on that stupidly handsome face with that stupidly proud voice of his, happily announces to them all:

“Guys, I want you all to meet Tracks of Praxus — My dashing Autobot. My Prince Charming. My boyfriend. Told you guys that he’s out of this world.”

**Author's Note:**

> I hope you liked the surprise second gift! Have a happy 2019, everyone.
> 
> You can hit me up on [my regular Tumblr account](https://alyonian.tumblr.com/), [NSFW TF Tumblr account](https://starschemer.tumblr.com/), and/or [Twitter account](https://twitter.com/withersake) if you want more singing robots.


End file.
